When workers are working on the outside of buildings and in particular, high rise buildings, for maintenance of the building such as for example, washing of the windows, such workers typically employ swing stages. As a back up for such swing stages should the primary suspension lines fail, the workers and sometimes the stages are provided with secondary anchor lines. These anchor lines, which are generally slack, must be securely attached to the building by a means which will withstand the forces which may be applied to them should they be required to suddenly support the worker or swing stage upon failure of the primary suspension lines. Such forces include tensile, lateral and shear forces. In the past, these safety lines have been attached to any convenient structure on the roof around which a rope may be attached. Depending upon the structure, such structure may not be able to withstand the forces placed upon it when needed to support the safety line.
Eyebolt anchors have been provided on the roof or walls of high-rise buildings for attachment of safety ropes. While such eyebolt anchors have adequate tensile strength, they are relatively poor in terms of resistance to lateral or shear forces which may act upon them. Thus, when such a safety anchor is subjected to such forces, failure of the anchor may occur.